Darkness swallowed Ella.
It was cold. Silent. And completely dark.
A chill crept down her spine and her body shivered.
But before the darkness could scare her, she saw a small twinkling light from somewhere.
Ella looked around the place and slowly approached the tiny light.
Ella’s footsteps gradually slowed when she saw the source of light.
It seemed like a tiny leaf that was floating in the air. Except, it seemed to be made of crystal as it was transparent yet shiny.
She reached out to grab it but it floated away.
When Ella chased it, a blinding brightness spread in front of her eyes.
And she saw similar leaves flying everywhere in the darkness, illuminating the space.
In her daze, Ella reached out to hold one and suddenly, the scene in front of her changed completely.
Ella looked around the familiar place.
The grand mansion seemed to have corroded from inside as a darkness consumed it.
There was not a single servant in sight.
The place seemed to have turned into a haunted house.
Ella went upstairs. Even then, she could not see a single person in sight.
She had just turned when she heard a familiar voice...
"S-Second Master...’’
Ella walked in the direction of the study. The door was ajar and she could see a handsome man occupying the main chair.
But Adrian’s face was exceptionally pale, his eyes dangerously red.
’’Two weeks yet there is no news of her?" His voice contained an eerieness to it.
Ji Yan froze and then shook his head, ’’I have dispatched all the teams as per your order. We will soon have news about Miss Yu. But Second Master, the situation in the company has been chaotic... You need to go there.’’
Adrian tapped a pen on the desk, his gaze distant, ’’Where did she go?"
Ji Yan’s eyes teared up, ’’Second Master! You haven’t had a proper meal in two weeks, your sleeping disorders are getting worse. Any minute you close your eyes, you get up in an even worse condition. At this rate, how long can you even hold on?"
Adrian’s gaze never flickered but in his eyes, a storm seemed to brew.
Ji Yan clenched his fist and gathered courage, ’’Miss Yu threatened you with her life this time and you signed the divorce papers for her happiness. But, the reason she got kidnapped is because of the company she kept. How is it your fault, Second Master? Why must you torment yourself ?"
"And your move of dispatching all your private teams, closing down the movements in the entire city have alerted people in the main mansion. They all now know of your involvement with Miss Yu. And they are taking advantage of this chance to push Third Master as the heir."
Adrian turned to look at Ji Yan,his eyes bloodshot, ’’Was it them?"
Ji Yan gulped, ’’It’s not impossible. If they discovered your relationship with Miss Yu then they would not fail to take advantage of it...’’
A vicious aura surged around Adrian.
’’Investigate each of them. Investigate every person who has laid their eyes on her in the past month. Break every bone in their body till they confess!"
The pen in Adrian’s handed shattered on the floor as the man’s body collapsed.
Ella was startled but before she could move, Ji Yan quickly supported him.
After that, time passed in front of Ella’s eyes almost in a blur.
Adrian never woke up after he collapsed that day.
Even with Ronan and his entire team of doctors, his condition seemed to deteriorate.
Ji Yan followed Adrian’s orders and investigated people in the King Family, but he got no leads.
Kade was unanimously declared the new heir of the King Empires in the family. But outside, they kept this big change hidden. Instead of the CEO, he was made the acting CEO.
During all this time, Ella quietly sat by Adrian’s bed.
Nobody noticed her and she had long realized that she was completely invisible here.
She watched Adrian being taken care of by the servants, doctors and even Ji Yan who would come to cry after work every day.
Ronan, Ji Yan... All of them would curse her by Adrian’s side.
Initially, it made Ella speechless. She thought they simply hated her, and rightfully so.
But one night, Ronan revealed by Adrian’s side that they did it to anger him into waking up.
However, his body never responded.
The doctors said that his sleeping disorders, uneven sleeping and eating patterns, his toxic work schedules and his psychological problems made him collapse.
Yet, in the middle of nights, Ella saw his body reaction. He seemed to be in pain as if he was having some deadly nightmare.
But everytime she reached out, her hand would pass through him.
Ella did not know how much time had passed before she finally saw the man moving. In broad daylight, in a normal manner.
Is he about to wake up?
Adrian’s eyelashes fluttered. Just as he was about to open his eyes, Ella’s vision turned dark.
Suddenly, she could no longer see anything.
Darkness greeted her. Her entire body seemed to be pricked with poisonous needles. And a sharp pain throbbed in her thighs.
Ella couldn’t open her eyes. But the familiar voice of the mice around her pierced through her soul.
The damp air was thick with the metallic scent of blood. Her blood.
The pain in her thigh came from the number of times she had cut herself to track the days.
Ella could never mistake this pain.
This was the place she was imprisoned in! This was where she died in her previous life!
Suddenly, her heart turned cold.
Why could she feel the pain? Why couldn’t she open her eyes?
Why... was she back in that body?
The dread settled in her gut.
At this moment, she heard the sound of approaching footsteps.
The cell opened and someone stepped inside.
Fear clutched Ella’s heart, suffocation gripping her from inside until she heard a voice that was the most familiar to her...